LOS ANGELES — LOS ANGELES (AP) — Artificial intelligence has become a major point of contention in Hollywood’s labor disputes. Alongside traditional issues such as pay models, benefits, and job protections, AI technology is a wildcard in the contract breakdowns that have led to strikes by actors and writers unions.
Negotiations involving AI have taken negotiations into uncharted territory, with the language used sounding either utopian or dystopian depending on which side of the table you’re on. Let’s take a look at what the unions and employers are each advocating for.
WHY IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SUCH A HOT-BUTTON ISSUE?
As technology emerges to create content without human creators, well-known actors fear losing control over their valuable likenesses. Lesser-known actors fear being replaced entirely. Writers fear sharing or losing credit to machines.
The proposed contracts that triggered these strikes have a duration of just three years. Given the rapid pace at which AI is advancing, it’s highly unlikely that there would be widespread displacement of writers or actors in such a short period. However, both unions and employers recognize that concessions made in one contract can be difficult to regain in the future.
Emerging versions of AI technology have already made their way into nearly every aspect of filmmaking. They are used to digitally de-age actors like Harrison Ford in the latest “Indiana Jones” film or Mark Hamill in “The Mandalorian.” AI is also employed to generate abstracted animated images and recommendations on platforms like Disney+ and Netflix.
All parties involved in the strikes acknowledge that the broader implementation of AI technology is inevitable. That’s why they are currently seeking to establish legal and creative control.
Actor and writer Johnathan McClain, who was seen on the picket lines outside Warner Bros. Studios, believes this battle mirrors automation conflicts seen in other industries but signifies more to come as technology advances. He views this as a significant moment requiring a resolute stance.
THE ACTORS’ PERSPECTIVE
Discussions regarding AI between the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents employers, escalated from a theoretical framework to a bitter battle that became public when the strike began on July 13.
SAG-AFTRA described the studios’ AI position, which the AMPTP called a deliberate distortion, in a statement widely shared on social media:
“We want to be able to scan a background performer’s image, pay them for a half a day’s labor, and then use an individual’s likeness for any purpose forever without their consent. We also want to be able to make changes to principal performers’ dialogue, and even create new scenes, without informed consent. And we want to be able to use someone’s images, likenesses, and performances to train new generative AI systems without consent or compensation.”
In response, the AMPTP stated that its offers included an “AI proposal which protects performers’ digital likenesses, including a requirement for performers’ consent for the creation and use of digital replicas or for digital alterations of a performance.”
SAG-AFTRA used similar language in describing what they wanted, with a focus on protecting “human-created work” and preventing alterations to the “voice, likeness or performance” of actors.
Interestingly, the concern over AI technology primarily revolves around “voice.” While visual avatars of actors like Hamill and Jackson still face backlash, voice replication technology is more advanced. Recent documentaries have recreated the voices of the late Anthony Bourdain and Andy Warhol, causing voiceover actors to take notice.
WRITERS DESIRE CREDIT FOR THEIR WORK
During the contract negotiations for screenwriters, which broke down in May, the Writers Guild of America expressed willingness to use AI as a tool in their own work. They are open to utilizing AI software to assist in shaping stories. However, they do not want AI to affect the credits that are crucial for their professional status and compensation.
The guild strives to prevent AI-generated storylines or dialogues from being regarded as “literary material” covered by their contracts. This ensures they won’t be in competition with computers for credit or original screenplay Oscars.
Additionally, writers want to ensure that the storylines or dialogues created by AI are not considered “source material” in contractual terms. This designation is reserved for novels, video games, or other works that writers may adapt into scripts.
In its position statement, the AMPTP mentioned that writers desire to use AI technology in their creative process without altering how credits are determined. This becomes complicated since AI-generated material cannot be copyrighted.
The studios also stressed that in previous writers’ contracts, any “corporate or impersonal purveyor” of literary work is not considered a screenwriter.
While this stance may alleviate concerns about sharing credit with AI, it may also mean that no one receives credit when collaborating with AI.
The intricacies of modern screenwriting contracts and determining who receives what credit are already complex and often require intervention from the guild. Specific legal language is used to establish writing credits, such as “written by,” “story by,” and “from characters created by.” Introducing artificial intelligence into this equation only further complicates matters.
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Associated Press journalist Krysta Fauria contributed from Burbank, California.